The statements in this section merely provide background information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Portable electronic devices, such as laptop computers, cell phones, MP3 players, DVD players, PDAs, etc., are common place in today's society. Such portable electronic devices typically utilize a rechargeable stored energy source, e.g., one or more rechargeable batteries, to provide electrical power needed to operate the respective device. Charging devices, e.g., AC adapters, are commonly employed to access a main power supply, via a respective power supply receptacle or outlet, and provide transformed and regulated power to the respective device for recharging the respective stored energy source.
The portable nature of such devices allows the device to literally be carried by the user to any geographic location in the world. Accordingly, a user may need to recharge the rechargeable energy source of the respective device at different geographic locations in the world. However, different geographic locations in the world have different main power supply standards and codes, and the structure of the respective power supply receptacles or outlets useable by a user to access the main power supply can differ from geographic location to geographic location. Thus, a charger configured and structured to mate with a first type of power supply receptacle for accessing the main power supply in a first geographical location, may not be configured and structured to mate with a second type of power supply receptacle for accessing the main power supply in a second geographical location. Accordingly, a plurality of different adapters may be required to be able to charge a device at different geographic locations in the world.